The American threat to trigger the third Gulf War by attacking Iraq shows that Desert Storm, the operation to liberate Kuwait, was just a rehearsal for the impending tragedy. The dreadfulness of the new war is evident not only in the frightening scenes of killings and brutal bombings that we saw in Afghanistan but also in the absence of a legitimate reason to justify any attack.
According to Article 39 of the United Nations Charter, no nation is allowed to attack another country unless it has been attacked or threatened by that country. Although the US administration is citing the UN Security Council Resolutions 1368 and 1373 issued after the Sept. 11 events, they do not provide enough lawful support to convince the world community of the justice of such a war. There is no proof of any Iraqi role in the Sept. 11 attacks.
America has reiterated that the attack on Iraq was inevitable and that there will be no backing down from the move. In his recent speech, President George W. Bush said: "We have to take the war to the land of the enemy and counter the potential threats before they come up."
Amid all this hype, a spokesman of the US Defense Department is quoted as saying: "It is difficult to rule out or back down from the attack on Iraq even if the Iraqi president quits from power or allows the return of UN weapons inspectors."
The US insistence on attacking Iraq raises many questions: Are the reasons presented by the United States enough for people in the region to close their eyes toward the real intentions behind the war? Is the aim of the attack to save the people of Iraq from an oppressive regime or are there other goals, especially in the backdrop of threats to attack Iran’s nuclear plants?
There is no doubt that the US wants to install a pro-American government in Iraq, as it did in Afghanistan, and establish its political, military and economic hegemony in a region which holds 75 percent of the world’s oil reserves.
If all Arab countries take a joint decision not to support the attack on Iraq economically, politically and militarily, then it will not be easy for America to launch such an attack. The cost of launching the war and installing a new government in Baghdad would be too heavy for the US to bear unless it blackmailed the countries in the region into paying. We can now understand the American fears about the bill from the questions and discussions of US lawmakers.
If, however the Arab countries keep quiet and support the American move, then nobody knows what will happen to this region. The third Gulf War will be totally different from the previous ones.
10 August 2002
